Genesis 37
Suffering and God’s Sovereign Will

Genesis 37

Joseph’s Dreams

1 Now Jacob lived in the land where his father had sojourned, in the land of Canaan. 2 These are the records of the generations of Jacob.

Joseph, when seventeen years of age, was pasturing the flock with his brothers while he was still a youth, along with the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives. And Joseph brought back a bad report about them to their father. 3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons, because he was the son of his old age; and he made him a varicolored tunic. 4 His brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers; and so they hated him and could not speak to him on friendly terms.

5 Then Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more. 6 He said to them, “Please listen to this dream which I have had; 7 for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and lo, my sheaf rose up and also stood erect; and behold, your sheaves gathered around and bowed down to my sheaf.” 8 Then his brothers said to him, “Are you actually going to reign over us? Or are you really going to rule over us?” So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words.

9 Now he had still another dream, and related it to his brothers, and said, “Lo, I have had still another dream; and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” 10 He related it to his father and to his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have had? Shall I and your mother and your brothers actually come to bow ourselves down before you to the ground?” 11 His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the saying in mind.

12 Then his brothers went to pasture their father’s flock in Shechem. 13 Israel said to Joseph, “Are not your brothers pasturing the flock in Shechem? Come, and I will send you to them.” And he said to him, “I will go.” 14 Then he said to him, “Go now and see about the welfare of your brothers and the welfare of the flock, and bring word back to me.” So he sent him from the valley of Hebron, and he came to Shechem.

15 A man found him, and behold, he was wandering in the field; and the man asked him, “What are you looking for?” 16 He said, “I am looking for my brothers; please tell me where they are pasturing the flock.” 17 Then the man said, “They have moved from here; for I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’ ” So Joseph went after his brothers and found them at Dothan.

The Plot against Joseph

18 When they saw him from a distance and before he came close to them, they plotted against him to put him to death. 19 They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer! 20 “Now then, come and let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; and we will say, ‘A wild beast devoured him.’ Then let us see what will become of his dreams!” 21 But Reuben heard this and rescued him out of their hands and said, “Let us not take his life.” 22 Reuben further said to them, “Shed no blood. Throw him into this pit that is in the wilderness, but do not lay hands on him”—that he might rescue him out of their hands, to restore him to his father. 23 So it came about, when Joseph reached his brothers, that they stripped Joseph of his tunic, the varicolored tunic that was on him; 24 and they took him and threw him into the pit. Now the pit was empty, without any water in it.

25 Then they sat down to eat a meal. And as they raised their eyes and looked, behold, a caravan of Ishmaelites was coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing aromatic gum and balm and myrrh, on their way to bring them down to Egypt. 26 Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it for us to kill our brother and cover up his blood? 27 “Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers listened to him. 28 Then some Midianite traders passed by, so they pulled him up and lifted Joseph out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. Thus they brought Joseph into Egypt.

29 Now Reuben returned to the pit, and behold, Joseph was not in the pit; so he tore his garments. 30 He returned to his brothers and said, “The boy is not there; as for me, where am I to go?” 31 So they took Joseph’s tunic, and slaughtered a male goat and dipped the tunic in the blood; 32 and they sent the varicolored tunic and brought it to their father and said, “We found this; please examine it to see whether it is your son’s tunic or not.” 33 Then he examined it and said, “It is my son’s tunic. A wild beast has devoured him; Joseph has surely been torn to pieces!” 34 So Jacob tore his clothes, and put sackcloth on his loins and mourned for his son many days. 35 Then all his sons and all his daughters arose to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. And he said, “Surely I will go down to Sheol in mourning for my son.” So his father wept for him. 36 Meanwhile, the Midianites sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, Pharaoh’s officer, the captain of the bodyguard.

Unpacking Genesis 37

The story of Joseph is profound, encouraging, instructive, and inspiring. We need to know it. It covers 13 chapters—that’s a lot. So, we’ll summarize Joseph’s early life briefly by focusing on Genesis 37.

Let’s begin by quickly recapping the final years of Jacob’s life after he swindled Isaac and Esau out of Esau’s blessing. After Jacob deceived his father, Isaac, he moved to the land of Haran, where his mother’s brother, Laban, lived. When Jacob arrived, he quickly met Laban’s daughter named Rachel. Jacob was so smitten with Rachel he could only kiss her and cry (you can check it out for yourself in Genesis 29:11).

Apparently, his tears won over Rachel’s heart, and soon Jacob was working for “Uncle Laban” so that he could marry her. Jacob worked for Laban for seven years to marry Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days because he loved Rachel so much (verse 20).

Finally, on their wedding night, Laban swapped his older daughter Leah for Rachel. Not cool. But a week later, Laban let Jacob marry Rachel too. So, in a week, Jacob went from being a bachelor to having two wives. This caused all kinds of trouble for Jacob. Things got even weirder when he took their maids, Bilhah and Zilpah, as concubines. Through these four women, Jacob had twelve sons who would become known as “The Twelve Tribes of Israel.”

Having a father-in-law who secretly swaps one daughter for another as a bride does not make for a harmonious relationship. So, although Jacob stayed with Laban for 20 years, things were never exquisite.

Then, in Genesis 31:3, the Lord told Jacob to head back home to where he grew up. The problem is “home” is where Esau is. However, things work out surprisingly well. After a rocky departure from Laban, Jacob has a joyful reunion with Esau in Genesis 33, and Jacob ends up living in Canaan until Genesis 46.

Now we come to Genesis 37 and the account of Joseph. We will see that the Lord uses Joseph to save the nation of Israel, but not without much heartache for young Joseph.

Genesis 37:2 gives us a window into the environment in which Joseph grew up. He has 12 brothers and some sisters, but I suspect Joseph spent much time away from them. His mom died back in Genesis 35, which meant Joseph was raised by 2 or 3 stepmoms, plus ten older brothers of varying ages that he did not even get along with, as reflected by the bad report they brought about Joseph in verse 3.

Verse 4 says they hated Joseph so much they couldn’t even speak to him kindly. Part of the reason for this family strife is explained in verse 3, where it says Jacob loved Joseph more than his other sons. Apparently, Jacob took after his own parents, whose favoritism split the home.

Unfortunately, Jacob is oblivious to the damage his favoritism has caused. So, in verse 3, Jacob gave Joseph a “varicolored tunic.” The King James Version calls this a “coat of many colors.” The New American Standard has a side note saying this is a “full-length robe.” This full-length robe would have reached down to his feet. It wasn’t a colorful windbreaker. It was a robe of dignity. It would be like Joseph wearing a tuxedo while his brothers all had to wear work clothes. It was clear to everyone who Jacob favored.

Over time, Joseph had two divinely prophetic dreams. First, Joseph dreamt his brother’s wheat bowed down to his own wheat (verse 7). He told them about it in verse 8, and they hated him even more.

Then in verse 9, Joseph dreamt that even the stars, sun, and moon bowed down to him! Everyone understood the implication of this dream, and in verse 10, even his parents were annoyed.

For those of us who know how the story ends, we know these dreams were prophetic. A day was coming when Joseph’s family would bow down to him, but it would not come through a life of ease but adversity.

Joseph’s life of adversity began in verse 18. To make a long story short, Joseph’s brothers concoct a plan to kill him in verse 20. In verses 21 and 22, Jacob’s oldest son, Reuben, convinces them not to kill Joseph, just throw him in a pit. This momentary decision changes the history of the Jews forever.

Eventually, they sell Joseph as a slave to some Ishmaelites in verse 28. The name “Ishmaelite” might sound familiar. They were the descendants of “Ishmael,” Isaac’s half-brother born of Hagar back in Genesis 21.

The Ishmaelites took Joseph to Egypt. No doubt, Joseph did not know if he would ever see his family again. This was a period of tremendous difficulty for Joseph, yet it led to the salvation of his family.

Going on to Genesis 39, Joseph is bought by a man named Potiphar, who was the captain of Pharaoh’s bodyguards. Verse 2 states that the Lord was with Joseph, and in verse 4, he became the overseer of the house. Potiphar was thrilled with Joseph, and so was Potiphar’s wife.

More than likely, we’re familiar with what happens next. Potiphar’s wife tries to seduce Joseph. Joseph was faithful to the Lord and resisted her advances because he did not want to sin against Potiphar or the Lord (verse 8). In verse 12, Potiphar’s wife grabs him, he flees, and in the process, she rips off his garment. Joseph’s moral resolve is crystal clear. He won’t give in. When Potiphar’s wife saw that Joseph would not give in, she tried to destroy him and claimed he had attacked her.

This is a bad situation. Joseph was a Hebrew slave, a nobody! He was accused of attacking the wife of his master, the captain of Pharaoh’s bodyguards! Under any other circumstances, this would have meant certain death, but the Lord protected Joseph.

Although verse 19 says that Potiphar’s anger “burned,” it doesn’t say “who” his anger burned against. The fact that Potiphar did not have Joseph executed probably means Potiphar figured out Joseph was not the instigator of this situation. Rather than executing Joseph, Potiphar sends him to prison.

While not an easy ordeal, this was part of the Lord’s plan.

Chapters 40 and 41 cover Joseph’s prison time and eventual release.

While in prison, Joseph interacted with two imprisoned officials, Pharaoh’s chief baker, and his chief cupbearer. One night, both men had dreams. In verse 8, Joseph interpreted their dreams, saying the chief cupbearer would be restored to Pharaoh’s side, but the chief baker would be executed. Both interpretations came true. Joseph asked the cupbearer to remember him, but the cupbearer forgot (or at least for a while).

A few years passed, and Joseph was still holed up in prison. One night Pharaoh had a set of unnerving dreams. When his magicians could not interpret them, the cupbearer remembered Joseph and mentioned him to Pharaoh. Joseph was brought before Pharaoh, and the Lord gave Joseph the interpretation of Pharaoh’s dreams: famine was coming. Joseph advised Pharaoh to begin a policy of taxation for the next seven years so that they could save enough grain to last through the seven-year famine that was about to come.

Amazingly, Pharaoh saw Joseph’s wisdom and appointed him to oversee this task. During this period, Joseph amassed more grain than could be counted and ruled over Egypt, second only to Pharaoh. We will finish this story next time in our study of Genesis 45, which really begins in Genesis 42.

While there are many practical applications and encouragements from the life of Joseph, we need to remember why all of this happened. This account of the life of Joseph is a bridge to the book of Exodus, which opens with the Jews having been enslaved in Egypt for over 400 years. These passages tell us why. There was a famine throughout that entire region. Food became scarce, and Jacob and his sons had to move to Egypt to survive. There, the Lord had already put one of His own people, Joseph, in a place of authority to preserve his family and the people of God.

Although we could legitimately make many personal applications, for the purposes of this study, let’s focus on the point of the text. Joseph was a man of righteous integrity whom God used to preserve His people. Similarly, God may use adversity and trials in our lives to bless us and others. Joseph’s life is an inspiration that even if we face much adversity, the only right path forward is to trust God and obey Him.

Study and Discussion Questions

Listening to the Key Chapters Podcast on this chapter provides further insights into the following questions.

1. Using a Bible atlas or an online atlas, on the map to the right, locate Shechem (where Jacob’s sons were pasturing their flock in verse 12), Hebron (where Jacob was living at the time), and Dothan (where Joseph found his brothers). How would you describe these distances? When Joseph is sold to the Ishmaelites in verse 28, what kind of distance was that journey to Egypt?

2. Joseph grew up without his birth mom because Rachel died in Genesis 35. He had multiple stepmoms, ten older brothers, and a dad who seemed disconnected from his family dynamics. What kind of environment was this for growing up in? What was Joseph’s relationship like with all these people?

3.The study explained Joseph’s robe signified his dignity over his brothers. What kind of animosity did this favoritism produce between Joseph and his brothers? How did the Lord use this division to bring about His will? Has God ever used something seemingly insignificant in your life to change the path you were on?

4. What were Joseph's dreams, and what did they signify? What reaction did this produce between Joseph and his brothers?

5. Although Joseph could have handled his family situation more delicately, he was not wrong in telling his brothers about these dreams. Has there been a time when you learned a spiritual principle, but when you told others, they reacted poorly? What can we learn from this?

6. Joseph’s brothers sinned against Joseph, yet we know from Genesis 50:20 that this was part of God’s plan. What does this tell us about God’s sovereign will? Why does God sometimes use sin and sinners to accomplish His purposes?

7. In verse 21, Reuben convinced his brothers not to kill Joseph. How did that decision change history for the children of Israel?

8. Even though Joseph was going through such hardship, he was exactly in God’s will. Does God promise us a life of ease if we are faithful to Him? How is Joseph’s life a reminder for us to trust the Lord no matter what He brings into our lives?

9. The study summarized Joseph’s life from Genesis 37 to 44. How did Joseph respond amid life’s troubles? Where did this strength come from?

10.No doubt, when Joseph faced the challenges of Genesis 37-44, his life had not worked out the way he had hoped. Ultimately, why did God allow him to go through these sufferings (see also Genesis 45:7, 50:20)? What kind of hope does this give us when we face difficulties in our own life?

11. Thirteen chapters are dedicated to the life of Joseph, with a total content exceeding the content of Abraham’s life by 25 percent. One reason for this might be to help us see the similarities between the life of Joseph and Jesus. How are both of their lives similar? Or, to use theological terms, how is Joseph’s life a “type” of Jesus? (A type is a theological term referring to something in the Old Testament that foreshadows Jesus).